91原创 Township is appealing a ruling that would have allowed a farmer to process poultry on his rural South 91原创 property.
A Township spokesperson confirmed that the municipality is appealing the December ruling by Justice Gary P. Weatherill that dismissed the Township鈥檚 petition against poultry farmer Garrett Broatch and his company.
The Township would not issue any further comment on the appeal.
Broatch said he would also not comment yet on the court proceedings.
The legal battle has now gone on more than five years, t0 2016, when Broach first applied for a rezoning to allow him to build an abattoir for poultry on his 40-acre farm.
In 2018, the Township unanimously voted against the rezoning, after public hearings at which several of Broatch鈥檚 neighbours raised concerns about the scale of the operation, or hypothetical impacts on the local aquifer.
However, then-councillor Angie Quaale worried that the Ministry of Agriculture might override the Township鈥檚 decision under 鈥榬ight to farm鈥� legislation, noting that Broatch鈥檚 application was in compliance with ministry standards.
In the end, Weatherill鈥檚 ruling pointedly mentioned that every other senior government agency had told the Township that refusing to allow Broatch to process his own chickens on his farm was 鈥渋nconsistent with the provisions of the ALCA [Agricultural Land Commission Act] and the LGA [Local Government Act].鈥�
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With the Ministry of Agriculture and the Agricultural Land Commission supportive of Broatch鈥檚 right to process his own poultry, he went ahead and built his facility in 2020, without a Township permit.
The Township then started issuing daily fines of $500 for months-long periods in 2020 and 2021, adding up to about $100,000. Broatch has contested the fines.
Weatherill was scathing about the Township levying fines when it was in the middle of a legal battle with the farmer.
鈥淚f what occurred was not intimidation on the part of the Township, I find it difficult to imagine what would be,鈥� Weatherill wrote in his ruling.
However, he did not rule on whether or not Broatch would have to pay the fine, reserving a decision on 鈥渟pecial costs鈥� until after the adjudication.
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